Regret
by darkling59
Summary: In the frozen pause between incident and reaction during a coronation that should have been cause for celebration, two sisters realize their world is crumbling and come to very different conclusions as to who is responsible.
1. Anna

**Title: **Regret**  
Author: **darkling59**  
Rating: **K+**  
Date: **1/26/2014  
**Disclaimer:** _Frozen_ and all related characters, plots, etc. do not belong to me.  
**Summary**: In the frozen pause between incident and reaction during a coronation that should have been cause for celebration, two sisters realize their world is crumbling and come to very different conclusions as to who is responsible.

* * *

Anna

_I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry..._

Anna hadn't meant to do it, hadn't meant anything by it. She'd only been (justifiably!) upset over her sister's most recent attempt to make her miserable (And what did Elsa know, anyway? Hans was Anna's true love!) and just wanted to understand WHY Elsa was so reticent and cold.

(And, oh, she would come to regret that thought before the night was out.)

The younger princess barely noticed when the glove came away in her hand.

And then those WORDS. After all they'd been through together, telling Anna to leave with barely a tremble in her voice...

It HURT. It hurt more than she'd thought it could after so many years of neglect.

And so she externalized the pain that had built up over time, finally given a target for her confusion and anguish. She poured all her emotions into her words and lashed out.

She pushed.

And pushed.

And pushed too far.

_I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm so, so sorry..._

When the spikes of ice flew from her sister's hands, Anna felt like she'd been drenched in cold water. Not because of the potentially aggressive movement, but because she suddenly understood.

The whispers began immediately.

Magic.

Sorcery.

Witch.

Creature.

Abomination.

MONSTER.

And a million tiny things suddenly made sense.

How mother and father had hustled her away from Elsa's door, chiding her for disturbing her older sister even though they'd always encouraged their play in the past.

How Kai and Gerta were the only servants who ever braved Elsa's hallway, and even they were formal and cautious.

How the snow-flake patterned door always seemed colder than everything around it, even in the dead of winter.

How many times Anna had approached Elsa's room and found a patch of frost or pool of water seeping under the door.

How everything had changed without warning. It wasn't just Elsa, Anna now realized...between one day and the next, the adults stopped treating her sister like a child and started treating her like a time-bomb.

How the castle tutor had made particularly sure to address the witch-hunts of Arendelle's past in Anna's lessons, cautioning her to the perils of sorcery and the traditional response...

Mother and Father never tried to bring them together, only kept them apart...

The servants spent the bare minimum of time necessary in her sister's presence, and always left trying to rub warmth back into their fingers...

Every memory, every understanding, every sudden, damning realization swirled around Anna's head in a chaotic maelstrom she could barely understand.

All she could truly comprehend in that suddenly quiet moment, broken only by the whispers and stirring paranoia of partygoers was the absolute horror on her older sister's features and the way she pressed herself back against the door, ready to be hunted, ready to be ATTACKED.

_I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry..._

She tried to reach out, tried to make things right even though she had no idea how, but the second Elsa heard her voice, she flinched away and fled through the door.

By the time Anna got around the frozen barrier and into the courtyard, people were exclaiming in confusion and fear and the aura of merriment had transformed into a volatile, dangerous thing just this side of a riot.

Anna barely noticed Hans at her side. He was her one true love and she'd be very grateful for his understanding later, but at the moment Elsa was more important.

Now...

All she had to do was make her sister listen, make ALL of them listen and convince them this didn't matter, that the past ten minutes weren't an indication of anything fell or evil.

She had to tell them that Elsa had reacted negatively because she'd spent the last ten years locked up, stewing in her own terror. That it could be overcome by...by...

By Anna.

She suddenly felt small and lost, young and SO foolish.

_I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry..._

It turned out not to matter.

Elsa was just as afraid of Anna as she was of everyone else, perhaps more so, and she fled across the water on a bridge of ice and snow before her sister could get close enough to talk.

Anna could only stand on the shore and watch, heart leaden and scared in her chest, as the new queen's royal purple cape vanished into the darkness.

The next thing she knew, Hans had gently steered her away and the Duke of Weselton was talking about witch hunts, sorcery, punishments, and every horrible artifact of the past that Anna had thought only existed in history books.

Then again, she'd thought the same thing about magic.

Her protests fell on deaf ears at first, but with Hans' help she managed to mollify the crowd from fearful and willing to riot to uneasy and willing to wait and see.

_I'm sorry I'm sorry…_

This was her fault. If she'd only understood what was going on...if she'd pushed a little harder, observed a little better, taken her lessons to heart, SOMETHING, maybe she would have realized how much of a prisoner Elsa was. Maybe she would have understood the continuous sheer terror that must be Elsa's life.

Maybe she wouldn't have snatched that stupid glove like a moron!

(And, she realized now, why Elsa wanted to talk in private and why she acted so emotionless, like an ice queen. As soon as the phrase registered, Anna flinched.)

Elsa had been her life ever since their parents closed the gates, even if they had existed on opposite sides of a door, Anna was NOT going to abandon her now.

(Not even if Elsa had done so, a traitorous, begrudging little voice whispered in her mind. She silenced it immediately. Everything made sense now, that wasn't...she shouldn't feel like that anymore.)

It didn't take long to make her decision, to grab a horse and leave Hans in charge.

_I'm sorry_

_...but I promise I'm going to make this right._

* * *

**Author's Note:**

And so begins my first foray into the _Frozen_ fandom! This is going to be a short little two-shot (Elsa's chapter will be up within the hour) Unfortunately, it's not all that unique or original but when the muse strikes…

To be honest, I've had a lot of trouble with writing _Frozen_ fanfiction. I loved the movie and have an abundance of ideas…but all of the outlines I've written seem to have already been done in some form (superhero/villain AU? Done. Dragons? Same. Avengers crossover? Yep. Canon divergence where Elsa has an 'accident' courtesy of Hans?...Sort of. Metahuman AU? See superhero answer. Shapeshifter crossover? That one's…complicated.) It's awesome to read everyone's contributions, but it makes me shy about posting.

If you'd like to see any more Frozen works from me, **please review**!


	2. Elsa

**Title: **Regret**  
Author: **darkling59**  
Rating: **K+**  
Date: **1/26/2014  
**Disclaimer:** Frozen and all related characters, plots, etc. do not belong to me.

* * *

Elsa

_I'm sorry..._

All it took was a second, a fraction of a moment of less-than-perfect control, and Elsa's world came crashing down around her ears.

It wasn't Anna's fault - Elsa couldn't find fault in her sister's anger and pain. Had their positions been reversed, she probably would have demanded answers too. In fact, she probably would have demanded them a lot sooner. It just so happened that Anna's outburst was in the worst possible place at the worst possible time under the worst possible conditions. But that wasn't Anna's fault, it was _never _Anna's fault...it was Elsa's.

Her cross to bear, her burden to shoulder, her curse, her sin.

And as she stared into her sister's stunned expression, her own demure facade now cracked beyond repair by fear and horror, Elsa watched realization and fear dawn and felt her own heart rip in half. (It was justified, as much as she wished it was not. She never considered the fear was _for _her rather than _of _her. Why would she? What had she ever done to earn her sister's trust?)

She barely noticed the harsh wood grain of the heavy door at her back as she forced herself as far away as possible or the dangerous spikes of ice forming a barrier (defensive, not offensive, regardless of how it appeared) between herself and everyone else. All she saw was her sister, her magic, and the glove that Anna still clutched.

For a moment, she wavered on the border of control and panic, staying and fleeing. She balanced on a knife edge above hysteria and froze in indecision.

When Anna called her name, she fell.

And fled.

_I'm sorry..._

But it didn't end there. The citizenry of Arendelle were waiting outside, eager for a glimpse at the festivities and making their own fun in ways not so different from the royals within. They greeted her with cheers and kind words, but all she could hear was Anna's last call echoing in her head and all she could see were the frozen, destroyed bodies her people would become if she didn't regain control.

It was a vicious cycle - fear begets fear, after all, and her control was well and truly shot.

The ice came to her summons (though she did not mean to call it) and a fountain froze into jagged, angry shards hanging overhead. While everyone was busy gaping and cowering, she ran once more.

Some were scared of her, others were concerned for her, and most were confused. The situation was still salvageable if she so chose - these were the people her parents led who had known her since she was a child and supported her coronation. Despite the wide range of responses, they were not calling for her head (yet) and the hostility that came so readily to the dignitaries inside was absent in the courtyard. These were _her _people who she'd sworn to govern and protect to the best of her ability- they were the heart, soul, and backbone of Arendelle.

But there was no greater threat than her powers, and she was unworthy of being their queen.

She kept running.

_I'm sorry..._

The fjord gave her pause - she hadn't expected to make it this far- and for the first time she stopped moving and just stood, panting from fear and exhaustion (ten years locked in a small room did not lend much physical stamina). The only sounds on the warm (cool. Getting colder by the second.) summer night were those of her own creation and for a moment she considered giving in to her hysteria and just collapsing, letting go of all the emotions she'd kept locked away behind her mask. (_Conceal, don't feel_. Less than a day with the gates open and she'd screwed everything up. What would her parents think of her now?)

But despite the situation, she was no wilting daisy and her rational mind was already retaking the reins from her instincts.

Unfortunately, that painted an even _bleaker _situation.

She bowed her head and stared sightlessly at water mere inches from her feet, thoughts of witch hunts and burning dancing through her mind's eye. And those were the _best _possible outcomes...the worst had to do with war and death, the magic gaining control and turning her into a living weapon or any of those oh-so-polite dignitaries choosing a different tangent than Weselton and bringing ruination to peaceful Arendelle.

But what could she do? There was no way out of this; no way forward and no way back. Would she be forced to stay here, backed against the water until someone chose what to do with her?

Anna's yell of her name startled her into stepping backwards. (Of course it would be Anna. Elsa's heart shuddered and squeezed in pain. How much must her sister hate her, now that the truth was out? Which side of the fence would she come down on?)

When hoarfrost spread from her foot across the lake, a bizarre, probably ridiculous idea sparked. She never would have considered it under normal circumstances, but her desperation convinced her to step fully onto the water.

It held.

One step, two, and suddenly she was running across the water (ice) and feeding power into the fjord beneath her to stay afloat.

The sounds of pursuit (of Anna) faded into the distance behind her and Elsa began to breathe more easily. They couldn't use her or hurt her if they couldn't catch her, and her powers couldn't hurt them if she was on her own.

Anna's final shout, full of worry, fear, and betrayal, niggled at the back of her mind, but Elsa forced it away.

This was for the best.

It _was._

_I'm sorry..._

For the first time in forever, she truly let go of her powers and felt the tension flow away. She laughed and sang as she hadn't done since she was a child, and used her abilities to create rather than destroy. Once, she'd thought they were a blessing rather than a curse and for the first time since that horrible accident, she remembered why.

And when she was done, her fear and sadness a minor sour note buried beneath exhilaration and pride, she stood on the balcony of her brand new palace clad in a dress formed from threads of ice (which was _so cool. _She hadn't known that was _possible!_) and watched her snow blanket the North Mountain in a fresh layer of glistening white powder.

It was only after she came down from her adrenaline high and locked herself inside that she realized just how _empty _it felt. Her footsteps echoed on the walls and the howling of the wind outside created an eerie moaning and whistling through the ramparts and spires. She firmly pushed thoughts of loneliness away, burying the memories of two little girls playing in a quiet palace, alone save for each other but happy for it, and firmed her resolve.

The die had already been cast and her roll was not so horrible as she'd thought it would be.

And really...what more could she ask for? Everyone (especially Anna) was safe, Elsa was free, and Arendelle would prosper _without _its secret sorceress.

She couldn't quite banish the memory of Anna's eyes beyond the ice shards, terrified and understanding, but if anything it convinced her she was doing the right thing.

_I'm sorry..._

_...but this is the only way I can make things right._

* * *

**Author's Note:**

That's all, folks! Hope you liked it.

I don't currently have any plans to continue, but I have some plotbunnies gnawing at my muse for other stories. At the moment, there is only one that I've written for and it is a modern metahuman AU. The story itself is action and drama with canon character dynamics (plot-based, some background UST), but the bit I've written is angsty bordering on tragic; Anna _really _needs to stop trusting Hans and poor Elsa isn't going to last much longer without an ambulance. Time will tell if I ever manage to finish or decide to post it.

Please read and review!

(…And if you're here about my other fandom fics, take a look at my profile for a status update. I promise I'm not abandoning them.)


End file.
